NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-12-2025 6PM EDT

Episode Date: September 12, 2025

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dan Ronan. Authorities say the search for the gunman who killed conservative activist Charlie Kirk is over. A 22-year-old man was arrested today in connection with Wednesday's shooting at a Utah college campus. Steve Futterman reports. As he announced that authorities had arrested the suspect, Utah Governor Spencer Cox made a call for national unity. This is our moment. Do we escalate or do we find an off-ramp? Although authorities have not shared a motive, Cox said a family member told investigators that Tyler Robinson had become more interested in politics in recent years, and had criticized Charlie Kirk's views, which he said were hateful. The Utah governor said political differences should not lead to violence.

It's a choice. It's a choice. And every one of us gets to make that choice. Formal charges are expected next week when Robinson is due in court. For NPR News, I'm Steve Futterman in Orham, Utah. A man was fatally shot this morning during a confrontation with immigration officers near Chicago. The region is currently in the midst of a heightened immigration enforcement campaign, which is being called Operation Midway Blitz. NPR's Jasmine Garst reports. The Department of Homeland Security says this morning, during an immigration arrest,

Silberio Villegas Gonzalez, resisted arrest and attempted to flee in his car, dragging an officer with the car. Other officers fired on the vehicle, killing Villegas Gonzalez. The officer, he dragged, sustained multiple serious injuries, but survived. A spokesperson for DHS told NPR that, quote, social media videos and activists encouraging illegal aliens to resist law enforcement, not only spread misinformation, but also undermine public safety, as well as the safety of our officers and those being apprehended.

End quote. Jasmine Garst, NPR News, New York. Consumers are feeling a bit gloomier about the U.S. economy amid rising prices and slowing job growth. NPR Scott Horsley reports on the latest sentiment survey from the University of Michigan. The university's index of consumer sentiment dropped more than expected this month. Low and Middle Income survey respondents sounded particularly nervous about a weakening job market and accelerating inflation. Sentiment is not as bad, however, as it was this spring, shortly after President Trump announced his worldwide tariffs, About six in ten survey respondents this month volunteered that tariffs are affecting their economic outlook.

Consumers are also concerned about their personal finances, both now and in the future. People anticipate rising risk to the overall job market and see the odds of losing their own job is higher than one in five. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. Wall Street finished the weak mix. The Dow declined 273 points. The S&P lost three, but the NASDAQ added 98 points, finishing at a record high. This is NPR News from Washington. President Trump says he will order National Guard troops to Memphis

in what he calls an effort to control crime in that city. The state's Republican governor Bill Lee of Tennessee said he is working with the White House to finalize the details. The move comes even as the Memphis Police Department said overall crime in the majority black city has reached a 25-year low and the murder rate has dropped to a six-year low. A new way to monitor. rise in blood pressure is set to be released next week on Apple Watches. NPR's Alison Aubrey reports that the company's hypertension notification system will use data from the watch's

heart sensors. The optical heart sensor on Apple Watches will analyze how a user's blood vessels respond to heartbeats and contract this data over 30 days, then notify users if it detect signs of high blood pressure. An Apple spokesperson says the feature will be ruled out in 150 countries and says it's been cleared by the Food and Drug Administration. More than half of Americans 40 and older have high blood pressure, which can be effectively treated with changes to diet, exercise, and medications. Many adults don't know their risk of hypertension, which is a leading contributor to heart disease and also increases the risk of dementia.

Alison Aubrey, NPR News. The Republican-dominated Missouri State Senate has approved a congressional redistricting plan backed by President Trump that could help. Republicans win additional House seat in that state. The measure is now being sent to the Republican Governor for his signature. However, opponents plan a referendum on the measure statewide. I'm Dan Ronan, NPR News in Washington. Support for NPR.